That little baby lying so cutely in the manger is the biggest trouble maker in world history, and the shocking claims that Christianity makes about who He is and what He means irritate and antagonize people all over the world.

Theists and atheists are different. While both groups think life means something, they understand that meaning in different ways.

Why do Christians and so many other people believe in an invisible Ruler and Creator of the universe—and then how does the Christian idea of God differ from the others?

Today is Holy Innocents’ Day. Right at the beginning of His life on earth, Jesus was at the place where hope and death meet.

The specifically Christian idea of the Virgin Birth is one of the most controversial and confusing theological concepts around, and a Yuletide blog which didn’t take on the topic wouldn’t be doing its job.

The traditional Via Meadia Yule Blog continues today, Boxing Day, with the second of the Thirteen Posts of Christmas. From Christmas through to Twelfth Night, we explore the Christmas story and the ideas behind the celebration.

Merry Christmas and happy holiday to all!

It’s Christmas Eve today and time for the oldest tradition at Via Meadia, going back to 2009: our annual Yule Blog when we update and present our thirteen posts of Christmas running from the preparatory Advent blog on Christmas Eve through Twelfth Night. During the holiday season, we will blog on a light holiday schedule through New Year’s Day. On January 2 we will be back at full force.

Christmas is important to Christians because from their point of view the baby Jesus is the meaning of Christmas, and the meaning of Christmas is the meaning of life.

How much of the Christmas story is “real” and how much of both this story—and ultimately the entire record of the the Scriptures—is historically accurate? This is a much more complicated question than it may appear at first glance.